The Senate Judiciary Committee has approved a measure
aimed to break cycles of violence that can lead to the children
of inmates eventually becoming inmates themselves. Senator Debbe
Leftwich is the principal author of Senate Bill 448. This
bill would require the judge to have written findings related
to the placement of the children of inmates who are single custodial
parents, most of whom are women.

“Women who grow up in abusive homes are much more likely
to be convicted of felonies themselves. Unfortunately, when these
women are sent to prison, their children are often sent to live
with the grandparents or other family members that were responsible
for that woman’s abuse in the first place,” explained
Leftwich, D-Oklahoma City. “We need to break the cycle of
abuse that results in even more incarcerations once these children
are grown.”

Oklahoma ranks first in the nation in the incarceration rate of
women. According to the federal government, Oklahoma’s rate
of 129 women per 100,000 is 50 percent higher than the national
average. According to the Oklahoma Commission on Children and
Youth, a 66 percent of women inmates have children.

“Part of the problem is we have a ‘don’t-ask-don’t-tell’
situation within our criminal justice system. Inmates and family
members often fly under the radar screen. If we know that an inmate
was physically or sexually abused by her parents, we can keep
her children from being sent to live in that environment, and
hopefully, break this cycle of abuse and incarceration,”
Leftwich said.

SB 448 next will be heard by the full Senate for further consideration.